


A Helping Hand

by Lyn_Laine



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, Female Uzumaki Naruto, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-13
Updated: 2017-03-15
Packaged: 2018-10-03 22:57:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 10,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10260770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lyn_Laine/pseuds/Lyn_Laine
Summary: A female Naruto takes kunoichi arts lessons with the other girls at the Academy.  Hyuuga Hinata asks the kunoichi arts instructor to help the girl who saved her from bullies become a worthwhile ninja.





	1. Hinata's Request

Chapter One: Hinata’s Request

“Uzumaki Naruko, will you never learn to behave?!” Suzume snapped. Suzume was the kunoichi arts instructor at Konoha Ninja Academy, and Naruko was easily her worst student.

“A cool ninja like me doesn’t need to learn to behave, ‘ttebayo!” Naruko shouted defiantly, her verbal tic as always coming to the forefront when she became passionate about something. She had just knocked over her basin of tea for the third time in tea ceremony class. Ink still stained her hands from messy, botched calligraphy attempts.

“You are loud, clumsy, short tempered, impatient, and tomboyish! I will never be able to make you a proper woman!” Suzume despaired.

Naruko’s face flushed and her blue eyes shone. “... Who cares?!” she shouted at last. “I don’t need your stupid class anyway! I’ll still become a great ninja, ‘ttebayo!” And she stormed out of the room.

“Uzumaki! Uzumaki Naruko, get back here!” Suzume demanded, but Naruko was long gone. Suzume sighed, irate, and turned to the rest of the silent, staring class of kunoichi. “You may all be dismissed,” she snapped, harsher than she meant to. “We’ll pick this up on Monday.”

Girls stood to their feet, still murmuring in shock about Naruko as they left the classroom. “It’s typical. Naruko brings it on herself,” Yamanaka Ino could be heard to say to Haruno Sakura as they left together.

“Yeah,” Sakura sighed, agreeing, “she’s so immature.”

Suzume went to arrange her things at her teacher’s desk, but she realized there was still one girl left. She looked around in surprise. “Hyuuga Hinata,” she said. “What is it?”

Hinata was a timid, shy girl, a reject for clan heiress position from a magnificent clan. She was nevertheless demure, graceful, sweet, calm, silent, kind, and obedient - a model feminine arts student. She dressed in reserved sweaters and nice pants, and her short, sensible hair framed her face nicely. Suzume had never had a single problem with Hyuuga Hinata as a feminine kunoichi.

“S-Suzume-sensei,” Hinata stammered out, pained, pushing her fingers against each other. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“Yes. Go ahead,” said Suzume, a bit impatiently.

“Please… please help Uzumaki Naruko!” Hinata forced herself to say, wide-eyed and impassioned.

Suzume paused in skeptical surprise. “Help her? I’ve been trying to,” she said.

“But you resent her… I can see it… And I don’t know why, but I can tell you she’s a really nice person! The day everyone was signing up for Academy classes, she saved me from some bullies. She ran in between us and tried to defend me. She got beat up instead. But when I tried to thank her afterward, she just laughed it off and ran away!

“That’s why… I’m asking you…”

Suzume had paused. This story of kindness and bravery was something she admittedly hadn’t expected of Uzumaki Naruko, who’d always struck her as troublemaking, bratty, loud mouthed, and rude. And Hinata was right in one way. Suzume’s older sister had died in the Kyuubi attack, which could have been why she was so impatient with the girl who secretly held the Kyuubi fox demon inside her. Suzume was easily irritated by Naruko, impatient and bitter in a way most uncharacteristic of her.

And, she supposed, in a way also unbefitting of a proper woman. She felt an upwelling of guilt. _You resent her. I can see it._ Hinata was only a child. Was it that obvious?

Suzume sighed. “So what would you like me to do for her that I am not already doing? I am teaching her, am I not?”

“Perhaps… I thought perhaps private tutoring sessions,” Hinata admitted. “She needs someone to teach her. She’s an orphan. She lives all alone, she has no friends, and no one likes her. She needs someone to take her under her wing and help her with things.

“She’s more lonely than she likes to admit. It’s why she causes so much trouble. Suzume-sensei… Couldn’t you tell? Right before she ran out of the classroom? When Naruko makes that face… It means she’s about to start crying.”

Suzume’s eyes flew open wide. Her mind went back over every detail. Could Hinata have been right? Could a young Hyuuga girl really have seen things she could not?

For a moment, Suzume saw things from Naruko’s perspective. She was only half taught by hateful teachers, and she had no one to practice with or tell her what to do, so she did badly. Then those teachers yelled at her and told her she was a bad ninja. To not only put up with that, but put up with it all alone, with no friends or family… That would make anyone bratty.

“Hinata,” said Suzume at last, “you are my best student. I only give out a favor once. Is this what you want me to use your favor on? Uzumaki Naruko?”

Hyuuga Hinata nodded. “With all my heart, ma’am,” she said firmly.

Suzume examined her for a moment. “You really care for this girl, don’t you?” she said at last. 

“I… I think she is amazing, Suzume-sensei. To never give up or become hateful and violent, in spite of how much people hate and doubt her,” said Hinata honestly. “She never hurts anyone, even when she causes trouble, and she still tries and hopes to be a good ninja. She even laughs in the face of the people who hate her. I think that’s incredible.”

“You could try being her friend. She could also use one of those,” Suzume suggested, eyebrows raising.

Hinata looked away timidly. “I… I don’t see why she’d want to be friends with me,” she muttered, fingers still fiddling with each other.

“Hm.” Suzume decided to work on this with Hinata over time. “Very well. I will do as you ask. I will offer private training in the kunoichi arts to Uzumaki Naruko.”

“Could… could you train her in the ninja arts too?” Hinata asked hopefully, her head shooting up. 

Suzume was reserved. “... If she asks for it,” she said at last. “You have your answer, Hyuuga Hinata. Go. But since this is your favor, I expect you back here at the end of each week to hear how Naruko’s training has been going. Do we have a deal?”

“W-we do.” Hinata bowed low. “Thank you, Suzume-sensei.” And she left.

Suzume stared curiously after her. Naruko and Hinata were nothing alike, but sometimes opposites attracted. She sighed reluctantly. Very well. She would try to help Uzumaki Naruko. If she must.

The girl did not seem to be much to work with, but Suzume would do her best. She was a professional, after all.


	2. Suzume's Offer

Chapter Two: Suzume’s Offer

“Naruko,” said Suzume, reserved, when Naruko walked into class on Monday, and the girl froze. “I need to talk to you after class.”

Naruko sighed and pouted, assuming she was about to be punished for storming out of class on Friday. “Fine,” she muttered. She spent half the class throwing paper airplanes at the teacher in retaliation for her presumed punishment.

Suzume almost went back on her word, but her own damned honor would not allow her to. Hyuuga Hinata had asked her to help this horrible girl, and she would. Somehow.

Hinata hung in the doorway, watching worriedly as Naruko reluctantly approached Suzume after class when everyone else was filing out. Suzume gave Hinata a meaningful affirmative look, and Hinata nodded and left.

“Naruko,” said Suzume, turning back to the girl in the empty silence of the classroom. 

Naruko was glaring at her feet. She sighed. “So what’ll it be?” she asked dreadingly. “Doing extra laps and pushups, writing lines, or that ever popular cleaning the blackboard? Ooh, I know. You could hang me upside down by my ankles and have me try to throw kunai at the patterns on an ink painting. No one’s ever done that before.”

Suzume sighed. “Naruko, don’t give me any ideas,” she said, but it was almost impressive - Naruko truly looked like she did not give a shit. “You’re not here to be punished, Naruko,” Suzume said.

Naruko looked up hesitantly. “... What?”

Suzume repressed a smile. “Someone has intervened for you, and asked me to give you private remedial tutoring in the kunoichi arts, if you’ll accept.”

Naruko’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “... Was it Grandpa Hokage?”

“Naruko, it’s Hokage-sama,” Suzume scolded her.

“Look, lady,” said Naruko, “the Hokage helped raise me. He pays for my apartment. I know his favorite type of tobacco, I know how much he hates his family, and I know where his secret stash of porn is that he keeps hidden underneath his desk. To me? He’s Grandpa.”

“That… is more than I ever wanted to know about the Hokage,” Suzume realized distantly.

“See? My life. That’s why I’m so screwed up,” said Naruko knowingly. 

“Naruko, it was not the Hokage who intervened for you. It was not, in fact, any adult. It was one of your classmates,” said Suzume.

Naruko frowned thoughtfully. “Who the hell would that be?” she muttered to herself. “Look, what makes you think I need remedial classes?”

“Well, you’re failing my class,” said Suzume, starting to get annoyed. “I take it you actually want to become a ninja, yes?”

Naruko paused. “Practical,” she approved. “Now that’s my level.”

“The girl in question guessed that when you ran out of class last week, you ran out to cry somewhere,” said Suzume. “She says you’re lonely.”

Naruko paused. She had indeed sprinted out of the Academy and gone to cry her eyes out at an empty training field somewhere. She was rather ashamed of it. Naruko had learned by this point in her life that the only thing crying got you was out of breath with itchy eyes.

“This girl,” she decided, “knows _way_ too much about me. I should have her assassinated.”

“Good luck with that, I’m not telling you who she is,” said Suzume flatly. “She wishes to remain anonymous. Naruko, I’m serious.”

“So I suck and I don’t got anybody in life. What’s your point?” said Naruko rudely, annoyed.

“My point is that you could _not_ suck, and have a teacher that gives a crap about you,” said Suzume. “And maybe, if I can get the girl to come forward by showing her what a stellar job I’m doing, you might just make a friend.”

Naruko glared up at her with narrowed, thoughtful blue eyes, distrustful and calculating. She did indeed look uncomfortably like a fox in that moment, with her whisker cheek markings, narrow crafty eyes, and mischievous pigtails.

“You really think I can do it?” she asked at last. “Be a good kunoichi?”

Suzume sighed. “Let me explain this to you in terms you can understand,” she said. “Naruko, you’re a prankster, right? You graffiti places, you set traps, you make paper airplanes, you put a frog in Iruka’s coffee just last week. You like tricking people.”

“Correct, I like being a dick,” said Naruko bluntly.

“Excellent. Well that’s what a good kunoichi is. Naruko,” said Suzume, exasperated, when Naruko looked confused, “what exactly do you think it is we do here? Why are you learning these arts?”

“So I can be a ‘proper woman’,” said Naruko with obvious, heavy air quotes, rolling her eyes.

“No. So that you can trick men into falling in love with you, get information from them, and murder them,” said Suzume, with bluntness the equal of Naruko’s. “Your goal is to be a glamorous seductive murderer, tricky and underhanded.”

Naruko froze, her eyes widening in realization.

“You think you can handle getting private tutoring in that?” said Suzume sarcastically. “You’re pretty enough. You’ve got the whole blonde, blue-eyed, cute-faced thing going for you. Not that this matters. I have frizzy black hair and glasses, and I manage to come across as handsome. Decide now. Because I owe the girl who made the request a favor, and I’m only going to offer this once.” She said it with dread. She didn’t want to be doing it in the first place.

Naruko gave a shit-eating, evil grin. “Yeah,” she said, sticking out her hand. “I agree.”

Suzume took a deep breath, and shook it. “Then we have a deal,” she said. “You come to this classroom every day after school, and I will give you private tutoring in the kunoichi arts.”


	3. Cooking

Chapter Three: Cooking

“The first thing I will tutor you in, Naruko,” said Suzume officially in the kunoichi arts classroom, more specifically by the stove workstations, “is cooking. Everyone loves food, and men love a woman who can cook them a good meal. What’s wrong, Naruko? Don’t tell me you’re one of those girls who diets instead of works out in a misguided effort to seem pretty.”

“No.” Naruko had made a face. “I eat tons and I work out even more. It’s just… I’m an awful cook.” She muttered in the direction of her feet.

“Your mysterious benefactor indicated that you are the type ‘never to give up.’ Is this not the case? Were they wrong, or I deceived?” Suzume asked frostily.

Sure enough, the fire came back to Naruko’s eyes. “They were right!” she insisted. “I never give up, dattebayo!”

“Good. Then no more talk about how you’re bad at something. If you were good at these arts, you wouldn’t be taking lessons,” said Suzume matter of factly. “Now, everyone is a bad cook at first, because in order to master cooking you must master certain techniques.”

“Techniques?” said Naruko, puzzled but interested, her head cocked and her eyes squinted.

“That’s right. For example, there are certain techniques to measuring, chopping, and mixing in the right ways. And in order to keep your food from burning, it’s important you buy a timer. In fact, several tools are absolutely vital to a good cook - rather like a kunai is important to a shinobi,” said Suzume. “So. Let’s get started.”

First things first, Suzume taught Naruko how to craft a typical meal: a bowl of white rice, accompanied by certain main dishes, a bowl of miso soup, and pickles. For example, grilled mackerel, egg, and tofu made for a good breakfast meal. Seaweed was another common delicacy. Suzume made sure to include lots of fish, rice, fruits, and vegetables in her teachings, so that Naruko ate a more balanced diet at home.

“I don’t like raw vegetables,” Naruko complained, frowning.

“Then cook the vegetables,” was Suzume’s smooth reply.

Still, the one thing Naruko couldn’t stand was salads. Suzume had her substitute regular salads for cold fish and noodle salads instead. 

On Naruko’s request, they also learned hearty soul cooking recipes, which Naruko loved - deep fried finger foods, ramen, and curry, just to name a few. Naruko learned how to put meats and vegetables in ramen, and how to make her own individualized curry (an everything but the kitchen sink sort of affair that included bizarre sauces, lots of spices, potato, apple, mango, and honey).

In all, they learned a few recipes from each type of cooking: yakimono (grilled and pan fried dishes), nimono (stewed, simmered, cooked, and boiled dishes), itamemono (stir fried dishes), mushimono (steamed dishes), agemono (deep fried dishes), sashimi (sliced raw fish), suimono and shirumono (soups), tsukemono (pickled and salted vegetables), aemono (dishes dressed with various kinds of sauce), su-no-mono (vinegared dishes), and chinmi (delicacies or foods of delicate flavor).

Slowly, over time, Naruko became an innovator. She liked experimenting with and trying new dishes, throwing in everything but the kitchen sink, trying something a little bit new each time she made a meal. Once she learned this creative side of cooking, during one on one time with Suzume, she was willing to put in the hard work to make herself a good cook. (It helped that Suzume let her eat what she cooked each time she finished making it.)

Naruko’s biggest problem at first when it came to cooking was precision. She did everything in a quick, sloppy, imprecise, and forgetful way at first. Suzume over and over again pointed out the imperfections. “Again!” she snapped. “Again!” And Naruko kept working until she became both precise and fast at the same time, until she remembered everything perfectly.

So in the cooking section, Naruko learned precision, an important skill in any of her future feminine arts. She learned precise and careful technique, measuring and counting cooking times and cutting the ingredients a certain way. She bought all the right cooking tools and learned how to use them.

Suzume was surprised and troubled. Naruko was very hardworking - she even practiced at home, it was obvious - and was an extremely good student once given the correct attention, useful corrections instead of shouts or scoldings. 

Could it have been that easy for her Academy teachers all along?

“I like cooking,” Naruko decided at the end. “I like making stuff and having big, hearty meals I can eat at home.”

So she was won over on at least one of the feminine arts, and had learned a little bit about precise technique along the way.


	4. Flower Arrangement

Chapter Four: Flower Arrangement

“The next art,” said Suzume, at a long table in the kunoichi arts classroom with a bunch of plant materials on the table before her, Naruko on the table’s other side, “is flower arrangement.”

“Great,” Naruko muttered.

“You have a problem?” Suzume raised an eyebrow.

“I’m not good at any of this making a pretty bouquet stuff,” Naruko said, looking up at her with big eyes.

Suzume sighed and closed her eyes, trying for patience. “Flower arrangements are not pretty bouquets, Naruko,” said. “You want that? Go to a flower shop.”

Naruko gave that puzzled look again - eyes squinted, head tilted. “Then… what is flower arrangement?”

“Most simply, it is an artistic sculpture made out of plant based materials,” said Suzume. “There are two types, ikebana and chabana. Chabana is found at tea ceremonies. It is simply taking a bunch of seasonal flowers and arranging them the way they would be found in nature.

“Ikebana is a little more complex. Anything that is a plant can be used, and materials can be shaped with instruments, cut off and reattached in a certain structure with glue - anything to make the arrangement lovely, and say what you want it to say. This makes it sound easier, but be warned: there are rules.”

“Rules?” Naruko questioned.

“Yes. Each arrangement must fit a certain geometric skeletal structure.”

“What is that structure?” Naruko asked.

“It depends on what style you are using,” said Suzume. “I will take you through several types of ikebana, from the ancient and highly structured right down to more modern freeform styles. I will also give you a brief lesson in chabana.

“But the most important thing about ikebana is that it’s not a pretty bouquet. It’s an artistic piece. It doesn’t have to be pretty. It just has to be artistic and say something. That’s why it attracts men: mystery is very erotic in our culture, and there is a strong element of that in this art. If you leave an interesting flower arrangement in a man’s home, not only is it lovely and interesting to look at, a personal touch from you, but he can spend time trying to figure out what it means, why he feels the way he does when he looks at it. A true flower arrangement master can make their viewer get a certain feel from the arrangement, with no words, leaving them to make the mental leap themselves. 

“Learn your favorite ikebana styles, and try to form a specific sort of calling card for yourself, a way to express your personality through flower arrangements in your favorite styles.

“Does that make sense?”

“I think so…” said Naruko slowly, thoughtfully. She was a lot less bratty when treated one on one like a normal girl.

“It’ll make more sense once you’ve started,” said Suzume reasonably, brushing this thought out of her mind. “So. Let's begin.”

Naruko had already learned precision through cooking. So once she’d memorized the skeletal structures of her favorite styles, and tried everything a few times, the technical part of flower arrangement actually wasn’t too difficult for her. She already had many of those skills: memorizing physical things, being careful and precise, and measuring, for example.

What she learned with flower arrangement was true creativity. She had begun that journey with cooking, but this tendency really came to the forefront when she was forced to craft whole plant-like sculptures, around a structure, that sent a message. Surprisingly, learning how to express herself in a lovely way wasn’t hard for her. Once she had the proper teaching, it was fun.

Her calling card became unique, as she was. Naruko had a love for using unconventional plant materials, many of them in absurdly bright colors, and arranging them in one of the wild, modern, avant garde freeform styles. One of her early pieces took a large group of huge, brightly colored tulips, all of the same size, and slanted them at a steep angle as if in a high wind.

It shouldn’t have worked, but it did. A true feeling of Naruko’s personality came across: windy, forceful, brightly colored, and cheerful.

“There is an additional advantage to your flower arrangements,” said Suzume, and she genuinely mean it. “No one else will have an arrangement quite like yours. Yours stand out from the rest.”

Naruko beamed. Suzume had been hearing less and less of Naruko's pranks lately. She was starting to suspect that what Naruko had wanted all along was attention and a way to express herself.

To aid this, she asked Naruko a bit about what she liked to do besides play pranks. "Eat lots of food," said Naruko honestly, "and garden. I like plants. I take care of them at my place, and I name them, you know. I name my wallet, too. I name lots of stuff. It's kinda weird."

So Suzume recommended Naruko start cooking big, all-day meals at home on the weekends, and she gave her several books on how to keep box gardens around her apartment. Naruko became over time an expert chef and gardener.


	5. Fashion

Chapter Five: Fashion

“Your next section is in fashion,” said Suzume to Naruko. “I am going to teach you how to look amazing, which is important for a kunoichi. All women are beautiful in different ways. It’s all about what women do with what makes them beautiful.

“There are three things I am going to teach you about: seasonal complexion, face shape, and body type.”

Naruko made a face. “I’m not one of those girly kinds of girls,” she said suspiciously.

Suzume suppressed a smile. “Just try it,” she suggested, “and see what you think. You are a Spring complexion, your face shape is a heart, and your growing body seems to be more of an hourglass type. This is lucky - you have many elements that are considered naturally beautiful.”

They started with kimono, since that was easiest. Kimono had a certain structure already to it; all Naruko had to learn was what colors and jewelry pieces looked best on her. She chose gold jewelry and hair pieces, and colors like periwinkle blue, aqua, turquoise, pastel green, coral pink, apricot orange, clear bright red, pale golden yellow, and bright purple. Suzume also taught her how to hide weapons on her person and in her hair piece while wearing kimono. She took her through washing properly, dressing in kimono, wearing jewelry and hair pieces, and painting her neck and her face.

But it was very important to Suzume that Naruko learn regular, everyday fashion as a kunoichi.

“One of a kunoichi’s jobs is to be beautiful and seductive,” she insisted. 

They went shopping around Konoha for different haircuts and outfits, and Suzume was troubled just walking with Naruko. She got so many cold glares from passing adults, and hateful whispers - and she seemed oblivious to all of it, as if that was just normal. Determined, Suzume used her clout to get them in anywhere Naruko wanted - even over the protests of shopkeepers - and they got her a good kunoichi look.

“Two things have to go,” Suzume mandated. “The obnoxious orange is totally inappropriate for a ninja, and pigtails make a mature kunoichi look stupid.” Naruko began protesting loudly, and Suzume asked flatly, “Do you want my advice or not?”

Naruko sighed and quieted, looking somewhat rebellious.

They chose a periwinkle blue dress that brought out the blue in her eyes, with pale golden yellow highlights that brought out the gold in her hair. It was tight around the breasts and waist, the skirt below loose and falling to about mid thigh, with long draping sleeves, her hands peeking out at the end and giving her the overall sensation of being smaller and more delicate. The weapons pouches went into place below the dress at her thighs.

She got a new haircut with side-swept bangs, and a bun that hit mid-height, right at the crown of her head. A long tail of golden hair hung from the center of the complex bun, hanging down her back toward her waist line.

In makeup foundation and concealer, she bought soft pink, tawny, and beige tones. She bought a glittering champagne sort of eye shadow, soft petal pink blush, creamy neutral lip liner, bright pink lipstick, and subtle, toffee-sheened lip gloss. All makeup was only put on in light layers, and totally waterproof.

It was altogether a bit understated, but very feminine, and it suited her fairer coloring beautifully.

Naruko stared at her finished look in the mirror in absolute awe. “... I look pretty,” she whispered, her blue eyes big and shining.

Suzume smiled slyly behind her. “And you’re an appropriate ninja - you’re wearing a kunoichi dress, your hair is up, convenient, and out of your face, you’re not wearing any perfume or expensive nail jobs, and your makeup is non invasive and waterproof. See? It’s perfect.”

Naruko’s lip trembled for a moment - then in a moment of vulnerability, she threw herself at Suzume, teary, and wrapped her arms around her in a big hug. Hesitantly, Suzume hugged back. It occurred to her, again, that Naruko was a child, and more than that a little girl. She didn’t have anyone to teach her these things, and might have always felt a little bit out of place.

Hinata was turning out to be more right about this girl than Suzume could have imagined.

So Naruko learned another thing - how to be fashionable enough to suit herself, and the value and fun inherent in beauty. She learned she enjoyed shopping for different outfits and makeups, and even took Suzume’s lessons in seasonal complexion and body type to buy herself some pretty street clothes at the shops that would let her in.

-

“Naruko is doing quite well. I really do think you should approach her,” Suzume told Hinata, carefully casual, at the end of another week.

“But she’s so pretty and is doing so well at becoming a woman. Why would she want to hang out with me?” said Hinata, ashamed.

“You are also pretty and feminine,” Suzume pointed out. “Besides - if there’s one thing I’ve learned Naruko needs, it’s recognition and acknowledgement. That’s why she’s stopped doing pranks. She’s starting to get that from somebody, namely, from me. But she could use some of that from more people.

“Don’t you want to help Naruko?”

Hinata looked torn. “I - I’ll think about it,” she muttered, nervous at the very idea of approaching the increasingly extroverted, girly, and bubbly Uzumaki Naruko. Naruko was shifting, becoming more of a teenage girl and less of a brat, but her strong, loud, chattery personality and determination remained.

Compared to her, with her short blue-black hair, pale skin, and dour clothes, Hinata felt pale and inadequate.


	6. Calligraphy

Chapter Six: Calligraphy

“Your next art is any that involves ink and paper,” said Suzume. “Most chiefly calligraphy. But I will also be teaching you haiku poetry and ink painting using ink and paper.”

Naruko was sat at a desk in front of an old newspaper, a brush, and ink. She glared at it, pouting. “Last time I tried this, I just made a mess,” she said. “It didn’t go so well.”

“That is because you were imprecise and impatient. Your precision is much better than it used to be, and that will be of your benefit. But in this art, Naruko, you must learn an important life skill: _patience_. You must be slow and continue working at it patiently, sometimes for hours at a time.”

And so Naruko just sat there, day after day, making different lines and movements with ink and trying not to make a horrible mess. More than that, she had to be creative. Sayings, haiku poetry, and ink painting all had certain creative rules that she also had to memorize and integrate with the perfect ink lines.

“The hardest part is when it all comes together on fancy paper,” said Suzume. “The whole point of calligraphy is that it must all be executed perfectly in seconds. It is considered sacrilege to go back and touch up the work later.”

So once Naruko had mastered all the individual skills, then it had to all come together in a matter of seconds, _without_ her making a mess.

She lost her temper several times, shouting and throwing things, screaming in impatience. Suzume stood there calmly, ramrod straight, hands folded, and waited for the anger to burn itself out.

“What has changed?” she asked coldly each time. “Nothing.”

So Naruko learned to be more patient and keep a better hold over her temper in this exercise. It was a long time before she made a calligraphic scroll she was happy with, as quickly and instantaneously as she was supposed to make it.

But by the time she had, she had learned temper self-management techniques and the fine art of patience, and had become a much calmer girl than she was previously. She was still passionate and determined but had learned how to deal with things, “instead of just losing my shit at them,” in her own colorful wording.

She even mastered the equally fine arts of haiku poetry and ink painting in the process.


	7. Dance and Music

Chapter Seven: Dance and Music

“You will learn two different aspects of music,” said Suzume. “Nihon Buyo dance, and shamisen playing. The shamisen is a traditional string instrument that you pluck, while Nihon Buyo dancing requires grace but doubles as a sort of act. Each dance tells a story, and the dancer is an actress, twisting about close to the ground, the body almost constantly asymmetrical, the necessary sensu fan waving. Each step and movement tells a different part of the story.

“In our music section, you will learn another important part of being a woman: smiling grace.”

There was a dance studio attached to the kunoichi arts classroom, and here - instead of learning a dance step by step - Naruko learned whole dances all at once by copying Suzume-sensei in the dance studio mirror. Suzume seemed almost supernaturally graceful, and at first Naruko felt very clumsy indeed.

But she was more patient now, and determined. She’d mastered everything else, and she was going to master this, dattebayo!

So she just kept trying. She spent long hours on the dance studio floor, or caring for her sensu fan. Integrating all these movements while acting was the next step, and keeping up a smiling kind of grace during the whole dance was the final step.

“This is good practice for real life,” said Suzume, “where women are expected, right or wrong, to be calm, smiling, and graceful.”

After her lessons in precision and patience, grace came easier to Naruko than it might have before. She realized Suzume-sensei had done it all in a certain way on purpose. After she learned grace, the acting and smiling was easy - a naturally sunny girl with a gift for acting, slow, calm, smiling grace now came easily to her.

This in turn gave her more confidence in her own femininity. Meanwhile, she practiced shamisen plucking until her hands hurt, training to get that precise, perfect performance from the string instrument she'd been taught to also give great care for.

She even practiced being calm, smiling, patient, and graceful in her daily life, and it came with great benefits. When she messed up in ninja class, she could laugh at herself easier. Her new cheerful, girly, bubbly persona went down easier with students. Even when she was alone, she could fool people by seeming perfectly serene and happy.

Her pranks gone, teachers yelled at her less. And with her new gardening and cooking hobbies in place, her apartment looked more like a home and she was less bored in her free time. She looked more like a real kunoichi now, too.

Naruko began to consider something else. Based on the syllabus, she was almost finished with remedial tutoring in the kunoichi arts - which had been done over a course of several months, not several years.

What if she asked Suzume-sensei for help with her physical and academic ninja arts as well? Would Suzume-sensei be willing to help her? She’d come so far under Suzume as a woman that… well, she didn’t want to alienate her, but she had to try, didn’t she?

Naruko looked over the syllabus, and decided to slip the question in during what she thought would be the last segment of kunoichi arts training. Learning about foreign culture and male psychology was a required part of the kunoichi arts syllabus, and that was academic. 

There, she could transition into asking Suzume-sensei for help with other parts of the Academy.


	8. Tea Ceremony

Chapter Eight: Tea Ceremony

“Tea ceremony,” said Suzume, “is where it all comes together. The peaceful, mostly silent ritual centers around the brewing and enjoyment of green tea. But it requires an excellently cooked meal, a beautiful chabana flower arrangement, formal kimono, a calligraphic scroll, and calm smiling grace. It requires precision, memorization, and creativity in the types of messages each part of the ritual gives off.

“Therefore, when you can be the hostess of a successful tea ceremony, I will call you a good kunoichi. The proper kunoichi can use a tea ceremony to mesmerize.”

Naruko started out being the guest at Suzume’s tea ceremonies, and taking exams testing her knowledge of their rules. It was a lot to be still, graceful, and silent for, very formal, a lot to memorize - and it took Naruko a long time to get this part down.

One notable thing was that she finally learned formality in how she spoke during the act of tea ceremony.

But once she had that part down, and began being the hostess of her own tea ceremonies, there was a kind of beauty, creativity, and freedom to it. Formality didn’t mean she couldn’t be warm, smiling, and friendly, and she liked matching up all the little artistic messages and getting it just right.

Naruko’s tea ceremonies left their guests with a warm feeling. She smiled genuinely at them, treated them like she was welcoming a friend, and her artistic details always gave off the best message possible, while her green tea and her meals were genuinely delicious.

Naruko formed an eventual love for green tea and the act of tea ceremony.

-

“Hinata, she’s beginning to ask who it is that helped her so much,” Suzume told Hinata on a different afternoon. “What am I supposed to say? You really must overcome this timidity and speak to her.”

“What… what do I say?” Hinata asked, pained.

“She is going to ask me soon for help with other Academy subjects. I can tell,” said Suzume. “When she does, she will need a study partner. I will say who you are, and recommend you to her as a study guide. Your grades are excellent; it’s the perfect solution.

“Is that alright?”

“Y-yes, Suzume-sensei.” Hinata bowed. “It is.”


	9. The Reveal of Hinata

Chapter Nine: The Reveal of Hinata

The final portion of remedial kunoichi lessons was a bit more cerebral. Suzume took Naruko first through countless examples of making conversation and playing games. She would pretend to be different kinds of men, and Naruko would be flattering and try to make conversation and play games with them. 

In this, Naruko did not need much help. Funny, sly, cheerful, incisive without being insulting, warm and talkative, passionate and caring, she proved capable of getting conversation and fun out of even the proudest and most taciturn of acts.

But then they got to research techniques for studying foreign culture and male psychology. This was when Naruko finally voiced her question, uneasy.

“Sensei… I’m not very good at any of this academic stuff, or at physical ninja stuff either. I know you’re a kunoichi and an Academy teacher. Could you maybe… give me some tutoring in that?”

Naruko winced and waited.

“You want to get better academic grades and become a stronger ninja,” Suzume interpreted, expressionless.

“... Yes, ma’am. It’s just that!” Naruko added, passionate. “If I don’t at least learn better academic study techniques, I won’t be able to master this last part of kunoichi training. And wouldn’t that be kind of a waste, after all this time…?”

Suzume barked out a surprised laugh, and Naruko stared at her with big eyes, puzzled. “I will help you train, Naruko,” she agreed. “I was actually wondering when you’d ask. It was a nice slip in, I’m very impressed.”

“... So you’ll do it? You’ll help me?” said Naruko eagerly.

“Yes,” said Suzume, nodding and smiling warmly. “I certainly will. I must admit you’ve come farther than I ever believed you would, Naruko, and I would be glad to make you an overall worthwhile ninja.”

“Yatta!” Naruko shouted, raising her fists above her head in a victory stance, and then she started jumping around the room and cheering.

“Oh, and Naruko?” Suzume smiled slyly herself. “The girl who was your benefactor has agreed to be your study partner in the ninja arts.”

Naruko paused and looked over at her with big eyes.

“I don’t know if you remember, but you saved her from some bullies once. She’s in your Academy class. Do you know Hyuuga Hinata?”

-

Naruko approached Hinata curiously before class the next morning. Hinata squeaked nervously and went very red.

“Hey, so. I guess I owe you a pretty big thank-you,” said Naruko cheerfully, smiling sheepishly. “Suzume-sensei told me. It was you, right?”

“I - I just think you can become a great kunoichi, Naruko, and I want to help you get there!” said Hinata earnestly.

Naruko paused in surprise, and then beamed. “And I can help you, dattebayo!” she added. “You’re always so silent, shy, and timid, Hinata. Do you know what I’m going to do for you in return? I’m going to help you like you helped me. When we train together.

“I’m naturally a pretty aggressive, extroverted person. You gave me a bit of you. Now I’m going to give you a bit of me.”


	10. Suzume's Realization, Naruko's Lesson

Chapter Ten: Suzume’s Realization, Naruko’s Lesson

Suzume and Hinata tag teamed over the following weeks to help Naruko catch up in her Academy level studies. They quickly found that helping Naruko catch up in physical tests of skills was easy - all she needed was a patient teacher and an opportunity to train and practice against other people.

So they took her through all the physical Academy skills. She became great at standard Academy taijutsu by training against Hinata, whose family had a specialized style of taijutsu known as Gentle Fist. Anyone who trained in taijutsu against a Gentle Fist user had to get better by force.

They took her through ninjutsu. She had lots of chakra but not very much chakra control, which meant she was great at ninjutsu that required more chakra, like the Transformation and the Replacement. She couldn’t do the Clone Technique, which required tiny amounts of chakra, to save her life. For a similar reason, she was bad at detecting and breaking out of genjutsu, also being more focused on what was going on in her own mind and heart than on what was happening in the outside world around her.

Still, everyone was bad at something - as Hinata pointed out helpfully - and she did improve somewhat in genjutsu detecting simply by learning more about it, enough so that she might survive out on the battlefield. And just by mastering taijutsu and two of the three Academy level ninjutsu into perfection, she had come far.

In weapons throwing, all she needed was a bit of personalized attention telling her what she was doing wrong in order to improve enormously. And her stealth and trap making skills vastly improved once Suzume told her to “see it all as a great prank.”

“It’s all about tricking people,” said Suzume. “As with being a kunoichi, that is the heart of what being a ninja is.”

In academics, it was harder. They tried explaining things to her, and Hinata became worried while Suzume became frustrated. She just wasn’t getting any of it, but they knew at the same time Naruko wasn’t stupid. “Why is she mastering physical skills but not intellectual skills…?” Suzume asked out loud to herself, and then her eyes widened in realization. “Learning styles,” she breathed.

“Learning styles?” Hinata and Naruko echoed, puzzled, after class in the kunoichi room where they’d taken to practicing academics.

“Some people learn best by hearing things. Those are the people who tend to do best at the Academy, because it’s lecture based and all about listening - or what’s called auditory learning. But there are at least two other major learning styles. One is kinesthetic - that means the person learns by doing. One is visual - that means the person learns by seeing things laid out before them, or picturing things in their minds, metaphors, symbolism, that kind of thing.

“All your life, Naruko, people have assumed you’re stupid. You did certainly used to be short tempered and reckless, which I believe we’ve improved on through kunoichi lessons. But what if you were never actually stupid at all? What if you simply… weren’t an auditory learner?”

So Suzume tried having Naruko implement kinesthetic and visual techniques when learning, teaching her how to understand based on the other two major learning styles - and it was amazing. All of a sudden Naruko was coming up with answers to things she’d never dreamed of before. Her academic grades shot up through the roof, she began speeding through tests, and based on the same prank-oriented mentality, she even began speeding through strategy puzzles that Suzume gave her.

She still wasn’t good at memorized rote, which required sitting very still and mind numbingly trying to memorize information with no real understanding, but overall she greatly improved. When she learned how to tailor to her own learning styles, and to apply her pranking mentality to anything that required strategy, Naruko wasn’t stupid - she was actually very intelligent.

This all led to Hinata flying into Suzume’s classroom one day in a panic, while she was teaching a different class and their class was supposed to be with Iruka. “Sensei, you have to come to the headmaster’s office right now!” Hinata insisted.

Suzume stormed over, worried, to find Iruka, the headmaster, and Naruko in the middle of an argument.

“I’m telling you, I’m not cheating! I’m just studying better, dattebayo!” Naruko was insisting, glaring, with barely repressed anger.

“You honestly expect me to believe you went from Ds to Bs and As on your own?” Iruka snapped.

“But it was not on her own,” said Suzume coolly, and everyone turned to look at her.

“Suzume-sensei!” said Naruko, brightening, delighted. Suzume favored her with a small smile, and then turned frostily to Iruka.

“I am giving Hyuuga Hinata and Uzumaki Naruko private remedial tutoring sessions after school has ended each day, on my own time,” she said. Hinata collapsed back against the headmaster’s office wall in relief.

“That… is very kind of you,” said Iruka, surprised and cautious.

Suzume smiled coldly. “I suppose so,” she said simply. “Unless either of you has any concrete evidence with which to frame Uzumaki Naruko for cheating, I believe we’re done here. I do not want to see one of my prized students be accused of plagiarism with so little evidence again. Come, Hinata, Naruko.”

Naruko was beaming so hard her face hurt. She and Hinata walked out proudly behind their Sensei. Naruko turned around and stuck out her tongue at the stunned Iruka and the headmaster on the way out.

Through her increased confidence in academics and her own intelligence, Suzume managed to get Naruko interested in books, music, and film. One thing she recommended: “A bubble bath and a book with a cup of tea or glass of wine at the end of the day can do wonders.”

So Naruko not only had gardening, fashion, and cooking, she also had books, music, film, and a relaxing soak in the bath at the end of a long day.

-

With Naruko and Hinata now training together so often, Naruko quickly encountered Hinata’s biggest problem: she was too gentle. She didn’t want to hurt anybody, which meant she did badly in fights. When she did badly in fights, she lost confidence. And when she lost confidence, she gave up too easily.

This made her seem weak, when really the root of her problem was misplaced kindness. She was a fine kunoichi and ninja, talented, intelligent, and feminine. It was her gentle nature that was the problem.

Finally, when Hinata had give up for the fifth time at a training field one weekend afternoon, they took a break. Naruko stood there, sighing in frustration. “Sorry,” Hinata murmured in shame, looking down at the ground. “I’m hopeless.”

“It’s not that you’re hopeless,” said Naruko bluntly. “It’s that you don’t want to hit anybody. If you were actually okay with hitting people, you’d be beating me as I am now every single time.”

Hinata looked up.

“Hinata, you don’t want to hurt anybody, right? That’s the real problem?” said Naruko cannily. Hinata nodded hesitantly. “Well guess what? If you’re sparring against a friend, and you don’t give it your all, they’re never going to get any stronger. And if they remain weak, they could die out on the battlefield. You’re actually hurting them.”

Hinata’s eyes widened in realization.

“It’s not that people like me enjoy hurting others, Hinata,” said Naruko meaningfully. “It’s that we’re trying to save other people’s lives by helping them get really strong. You say you want to help me become a strong ninja, but your actions say differently. And you probably treat people in your family the same way, which is why you’re not clan heiress.

“It’s a matter of mentality, not innate nature.”

Hinata was silent with thought.

“Let’s try it again,” said Naruko positively. “Fight me like you’re trying to save my life this time. That fierceness is good practice for out in the field.” She smiled. “You can do it, Hinata. Don’t give up! I believe in you, ‘ttebayo!”

Hinata looked at her in wide eyed surprise - and then she smiled, determination lighting up her eyes. She got into a Gentle Fist stance, and her entire posture changed, cool and steady. Silently, she began the fight, and pushed Naruko back in a wave of raw, iron determination. In less than five minutes, she had Naruko on her back with a fake killing Gentle Fist blow aimed at her head.

Hinata paused in surprise. “I did it,” she breathed, smiling.

Naruko grinned. “See? I told you. Fight and spar like that all the time, Hinata, and you’ll improve really quickly. You’ll get really strong.”

Hinata tried it - and sure enough, she improved rapidly, slowly growing in confidence as well. Naruko had been right, all along.

They had helped each other significantly. Hinata and Naruko quickly, on campus and off, became study partners and best friends. They took to frequenting Ichiraku's together, Naruko's favorite ramen joint, a homey, warm sort of place run by a civilian family who was actually kind to Naruko, believing in Konoha ideals of kindness and humanity. The Ichirakus, Hinata, and Naruko would smile warmly and converse together, with Naruko doing most of the bubbly, cheerful chattering. Occasionally they even got Suzume to come along too.


	11. The Uzumaki Clan, Hinata Surprises

Chapter Eleven: The Uzumaki Clan, Hinata Surprises

Hinata, cool and confident and determined, felled her younger sister for the third time on the mat in the weekly Hyuuga clan spars training room. The whole clan was silent with surprise. Hinata had caught up with her sister as of late, and was beginning to surpass her.

Neji was contemptuous. This would change nothing. Hinata still could not defeat him. Hinata-sama was fated to be inherently weak, and one day he would prove it.

Hinata’s clan head father Hiashi, however, was thoughtful. Hinata was not clan heiress because she could never defeat her little sister.

Now… that no longer applied.

-

Suzume had now been teaching Naruko for a solid year. Naruko was catching up rapidly as a standard if talented kunoichi and Academy student. This was good… but Suzume wanted to do better. She thought that, in order to be a truly strong ninja, Naruko would have to have some outside skill sets as well.

The problem was, Naruko was an orphan who lived alone. She had no clan scrolls.

So Suzume went to the Konoha archive library one day, to browse for some scrolls to take out and assist Naruko with. Naruko needed abilities of her own.

She entered the secret doorway hidden at the bottom of the great outdoor sandstone Hokage Monument. She was given a chakra scan, made her way past the green vested guards, walked down a long dark stone hallway, and entered into a stone room lit with flaming torches. It was vast and round, with tables and chairs in the middle, and was wall to wall filled, floor to ceiling, with shelves of books and scrolls on everything to do with being a ninja - only for Konoha ninja eyes to see.

“Suzume-san,” said the guard at the checkout desk, nodding. Suzume nodded in return, her eyes scanning the shelves absently. Eventually, she took off around the perimeter, examining the spines of books, the tags attached to scrolls.

But in the clan abilities section, she came across something rather odd. A whole grouping of ability scrolls, all labeled with what was apparently a clan name: _Uzumaki._

-

Naruko stared in the kunoichi arts classroom the next day at the pile of scrolls dumped on the table before her. “You’re telling me these are all _mine?”_ she asked disbelievingly, as Hinata gasped over them.

“That is correct. I looked up this supposed Uzumaki clan. They are not in any official Konoha textbooks, but they can be found in other history books,” said Suzume formally, setting the history book opened to the Uzumaki section down in front of Naruko. Searching, her eyes stared over the words.

“It says,” Suzume summarized, “that a massive ninja clan from ancient times eventually separated into two different clans. One went to Fire Country, the Senjuu, and they and their rivals the Uchiha together founded Konoha. The great Tsunade of the Sannin was a Senjuu. Senjuu are Konoha royalty.

“But the other clan, their cousins, went to Whirlpool Country and founded Uzu, another Hidden Village. They became their own kind of royalty. Their name? Uzumaki.

“Whirlpool was a green island country surrounded by turbulent seawaters - hence its name. Its architecture took the form of whitewashed villas. The Uzumaki had many abilities, chief among them naturally enormous chakra coils, the ability to suck water from the air, and almost supernatural sealing powers.

“Here’s the problem: they were considered so powerful, they were annihilated by enemy forces in the Third Ninja War.”

Naruko’s eyes widened, as did Hinata’s.

“Despite this, the Uzumaki are apparently a fully fledged Konoha clan. They operate under all the same rules as any other Konoha clan,” said Suzume solemnly. “You are allowed an allotment of money from the council, and a clan compound. As an established clan member, you are allowed to marry either one person or multiple people, though none of those multiples can have other spouses of their own. You can marry two people who are siblings or cousins, but not a parent and a child, or an uncle and a cousin.

“In other words, you operate the same way any clan member operates. And do you know who is listed as the head of the Uzumaki clan in Konoha, Naruko? You. You’re the only surviving member.”

Naruko had been struck dumb with disbelief.

“So the question becomes,” said Suzume seriously, “what is a living Uzumaki doing in Fire Country’s Konoha post Third War? And why weren't you told about it?”

Hinata looked at Naruko worriedly as angry, silent determination came over her face. It was time for a talk with the Hokage. Effective immediately.


	12. The Third Hokage's Explanation

Chapter Twelve: The Third Hokage’s Explanation

Naruko sat down across from the Hokage, tight and angry, a few days later in front of his gold-gilded mahogany desk in his vast office. 

“I was surprised when you made an official appointment, Naruko,” said the Hokage, a little old man in robes with a goatee and wood pipe. “You used to just barge in.”

“A lot has changed in the past year, Hokage-sama,” said Naruko, glaring.

“Indeed. You look different, and I’ve been getting regular Academy reports on your grades -” He paused, registering. Naruko had just called him by his official title. She was sitting across from him, arms crossed, obviously angry but not doing anything about it - that in itself was unusual.

“I’ve been getting private tutoring from Suzume-sensei, alongside Hyuuga Hinata,” said Naruko, in response to his questioning stare. “That’s what I meant: a lot has changed. And if you paid closer attention, this wouldn’t be news to you.”

“You are angry with me about something,” the Hokage realized, sitting back in his vast office chair.

“Suzume-sensei went to the Konoha ninja archives to look for training scrolls for me the other day,” said Naruko, gritting her teeth. “It would have been nice to know the Uzumaki were a _clan."_

The Hokage sighed, his eyes closing. 

“I asked you all those times about my parents! About why everyone hates me! All you would tell me is that my parents died the day I was born, in the Kyuubi attack! I’m from a clan and you never told me!” Naruko shouted, sitting forward.

“I didn’t tell you because I wanted you to have a normal childhood,” said the Hokage.

“Yeah, and we can see how spectacularly that worked out,” Naruko snapped. “Hokage-sama, what on earth is going on?”

The Hokage took a deep breath, and began. “Alright. Let’s give you the whole story. I suppose you’d have figured it out eventually. Please try not to go completely mad on this office, yes?”

“Okay,” said Naruko cautiously, confused. Was what he had to tell her that bad?

“You’ve heard, I assume, the background about the history between the Uzumaki and the Senjuu. The Uchiha head at the founding of Konoha, Madara, first controlled the Kyuubi demon using his Sharingan eyes. Later, that power was transferred over to the Senjuu head and first Hokage, Hashirama. He needed a place to seal the Kyuubi away. But where would that be?

“Konoha decided to make what is known as a jinchuuriki, an uncontrollable demon controlled by a human element - a demon sealed away inside a living human body. It can be done, but be warned: if the demon is ever removed from the body again, that body will die. A fox demon with nine tails and fire chakra, such as the Kyuubi, is particularly deadly.

“Jinchuuriki are often hated, misunderstood, and prejudiced against by their own people. They are not the demons themselves, no more than a containment scroll is the kunai it contains, but they are often perceived as incarnations of the demons they hold. So Konoha decided its jinchuuriki would have to remain a secret. That’s why you’ve never heard of it.

“But who to choose? The Senjuu knew the Uzumaki were uniquely placed to hold a demon. They had enormous chakra coils able to handle the strain, which combines with incredible healing abilities and unreal longevity. They are also sealmasters themselves. 

“A marriage was arranged between Senjuu Hashirama of Konoha and Uzumaki Mito of Uzu, in a diplomatic arrangement of good faith. Mito was sent to live in Konoha and marry Hashirama, and she became the first secret Kyuubi jinchuuriki. Her granddaughter was Senjuu Tsunade, the famous kunoichi. Mito was the first Hokage’s wife.

“Mito outlived her husband by a great deal - Uzumaki can live supernaturally long times - but when it was time for her to die, a new jinchuuriki would have to be chosen. Your mother was chosen, Naruko. Uzumaki Kushina of Uzu. She came to Konoha with her Uzumaki clan scrolls, founded her own Uzumaki clan here, and became the next secret Kyuubi jinchuuriki. She was a strong-willed, forceful woman, extremely powerful.

“She later married your father: Namikaze Minato, the Golden Flash of Konoha and the Fourth Hokage. Student of Tsunade’s teammate, Jiraiya of the Sannin.

“Of course, the Uzumaki were destroyed during the Third War, their survivors scattering to the winds. The only remaining Uzumaki clan that we know of is here, in Konoha. Kushina lost everyone. We think that is why it was so important to her that she and Minato have a child. This, despite the fact that labor weakens a jinchuuriki’s seal.

“After the Third War, with Minato the Hokage, they decided to have a child. It was kept a secret from all, and Kushina was taken out of the village for the birth - just in case the worst happened. Well, of course, the worst did happen. On the night of your birth, during labor, the Kyuubi escaped, rampaging through the forests around Konoha, killing many people, and ultimately destroying the wooden great wall and a good quarter of the village.

“Your parents died sealing the Kyuubi away inside the only Uzumaki left: you.

“The cat was out of the bag. You are the first known Konoha Kyuubi jinchuuriki, the first to face the typical prejudice. I tried to pass a decree stating no one was allowed to talk about what you held inside you - so the people your age don’t know - but even with that most children followed their parents’ example and shunned you. That’s why you’ve always been so alone.

“Your parents died wanting you to be seen as a hero, but that is not how it turned out.

“Nobody knows your parentage, not even the adults. It would have left you open to assassination attempts when you were young by your parents’ many enemies, so I kept it hidden. Even from you. I wanted you to grow up normally. That, as we know, was a horrible disaster.

“The secrecy decrees do not specifically apply to you. You can tell anyone you choose about your past. And, of course, you may train with the Uzumaki clan scrolls.”

Naruko sat there in silence for a long time. “... What about my father’s abilities?” she whispered at last.

“Jiraiya of the Sannin has agreed to come back to the village when you are training for Chuunin, during the Chuunin Exams. He will then proceed to teach your father’s techniques to you. You don’t have to worry about that for now.”

Naruko nodded. “It’s nice,” she admitted, “knowing. Knowing who I am. Knowing why everyone hates me so much. So Suzume-sensei knows but Hinata-chan doesn’t, eh?”

“Not even Suzume knows about your parents,” said the Hokage. “You may tell them, if you wish. I must say, you’re handling all this remarkably well.”

“I - I think I’m in shock. It’s a lot to process,” Naruko admitted. “... Where’s the seal? I’ve never seen it.”

“It’s what’s called a spot-invisible seal. It only appears during certain circumstances. In this case, when you channel chakra. It appears on your navel, over your hara.”

It was a crisis of identity. Naruko realized here that she had a choice. She could either choose to let her past define her - or she could choose to move beyond it. The choice was up to her. Either option was understandable, and nobody could make that choice for her. She could either be filled with hatred - or filled with light. Focus on the people who hated her - or focus on people like Hinata, Suzume, and the Ichirakus.

Naruko sat there in silence for a while - then she stood up, suddenly determined. “I’m going to show them!” she said. “I’m going to show them a jinchuuriki doesn’t have to be a monster, dattebayo! And I’m going to be an amazing ninja and make my parents proud!”

The Hokage paused - and then smiled.

Naruko walked out of that office with a mission. She would tell Hinata-chan and Suzume-sensei, she decided. But there was more. For the first time, she had a people, belonged to someone. And she was determined to show them well.

It was time to start learning the techniques of her long-dead Uzumaki clan.

-

Suzume and Hinata sat there in shock after Naruko finished telling them in the kunoichi arts classroom that day. 

“So that’s how it is,” Suzume wondered. “Everyone did always wonder - about your parentage. No wonder you turned out so well. Of course, you did all the work yourself, but look who you had as parents!”

“... I don’t think you’re a demon, Naruko-chan. I think that’s silly,” said Hinata, decisive, frowning firmly. “Any fool could see you’re not demonic at all.”

Naruko smiled and was quiet for a while, emotional. She felt accepted. It was unusual, but nice.

“So you guys will help me?” she asked, looking from one to the other.

“Oh, yes, we must,” said Suzume, fire coming to her eyes, the fire of tradition. “Let’s make you the best damn Uzumaki this world has ever seen.”


	13. Water Fist, Hinata Triumphs

Chapter Thirteen: Water Fist, Hinata Triumphs

Naruko’s first order of business was to train in the Uzumaki clan taijutsu style: Water Fist.

“It involves speed, agility, and good reflexes,” Naruko told Hinata and Suzume excitedly. “Defense means weaving around the attacks like fluid, instead of blocking them directly. And attacks involve quick, in and out hits to sensitive areas.”

She began training in this with Hinata together, the two of them doing extensive taijutsu sparring: Gentle Fist versus Water Fist. Each was the perfect antidote to the other. Naruko had to dodge all of Hinata’s touches, while Hinata was challenged to try to touch someone in a spar whose whole point was not to be caught.

Each improved rapidly with the other’s help, under Suzume-sensei’s watchful eye. Naruko spent hours after school in her apartment, going through taijutsu katas and series of movements.

-

Hinata walked into the clan sparring room one day, and paused in surprise. The whole clan was assembled there, including Neji and her father. Hanabi stood in the center of the mat.

“Hinata,” said her father deeply, “there is to be a rematch. You will once more fight your sister for the position of clan heiress.”

Hinata knew she had been improving in calm, quiet confidence lately, but she was still surprised. She and Hanabi exchanged cautious looks for a fraction of a second - then Hinata went and stood in front of Hanabi in the center of the mat. They both got into stances.

“... Begin!” their father shouted, and they flew at one another.

After all this, and with Hinata’s new mentality, it was not much of a competition. She felled Hanabi easily, and as she did, she saw her sister give a sigh of relief. Hanabi had never liked being clan heiress, and Hinata got the sudden suspicion her sister hadn’t really been trying to win at all.

“Hinata,” said their father coldly, as Neji glared from behind him, “you are now clan heiress.”

Feeling every bit of the pressure, Hinata nevertheless remained calm and bowed. “Thank you, Father.”

It was all Naruko, she knew. Just as Naruko knew all her progress was because of Hinata, Hinata in turn knew all her progress was because of Naruko.


End file.
